COMPLAINING

In a video presentation, Dr. Hanna Fry, author of the “The Mathematics of Love,” said research suggests that being free to complain might actually create a healthier marriage relationship. Fry says couples who end up doing best really low negativity threshold. They tend to speak up when things bother them, rather than waiting for small things to spin out of control. Fry looked at the work of marriage researchers John Gottman and James Murray and found that her conclusions agreed with a mathematic formula that they devised describing marital success. Simply put, Fry says complaining gives couples a chance to fix problems as they arise instead of keeping calm and enduring quiet frustrations.— Jim L. Wilson and Jim Sandell